Category: Album Reviews

From North Carolina , Underhill Rose (Molly Rose Reed, Eleanor Underhill and Salley Williamson), complement their three studio albums with this stripped back live recording, the release coinciding with their current UK tour. Recorded over two nights last September in Asheville, North Carolina in front of family and friends, the album features the trio playing double bass, guitar and banjo with all three sharing vocal duties. Continue reading “Underhill Rose “Live” (Independent, 2017)”

Bloody hell. This is the frankly astonishing debut album from the Portland, Oregon native Brue who has been mentored by Justin Townes Earle and produced by half of The Civil Wars and a quarter of the Alabama Shakes and is only 15yrs old. This is Stevie Winwood territory smashing into a scene when still of school age with a prodigious talent that defies convention. Why so good? Not just his age surely? No not at all but that does play into the critical assessment. There is no doubt that the production has lifted the occasional bit of weak material but the majority of this album aims high and invariably hits the target. This is no novelty record. Continue reading “Sammy Brue ” I Am Nice” (New West Records 2017)”

This 20 minute EP takes the listener back to a time when fuzzed guitars and shoegazing was not considered the social misdemeanour it is perhaps considered today (despite its reflowering this summer) . Nathan White IS Nathan Oliver – well, him and some fine pick up instrumentalists and this EP represents a return to recording after 8yrs off and took a year to record ( now that’s what I call a work ethic 1yr = 20mins of music) but it does have the feel of a serious piece of work despite its very solidly signposted influences and heritage. Continue reading “Nathan Oliver “Head In The Sand” (Potluck Foundation 2017)”

Brooklyn based Steve Mayone is one of those artists who generally get on with it. It being his daily graft as a musician, working with a host of others and finding time to release a series of albums which are well acclaimed. Indeed this site noted when reviewing his Long Play Record (2009) that it was “full of inspired songs which touches base with Americana, wistful acousticism and Beatles-style Power Pop.” He doesn’t get his name in lights but it is a guarantee of quality music. Continue reading “Steve Mayone “Sideways Rain” (Janglewood Records, 2017)”

On his sixth studio album country-roots rocker Todd Adelman has a preoccupation with the passage of time, ageing and the myriad changes in his homelands. These missives from rural America are set to a traditional country-rock sound, with rumbling guitar licks, courtesy of Eben Grace, and Ben Gallagher’s piano which can move from subtle and in the background to stridently foreground and more than slightly honky-tonk. It’s a rich and rounded sound that was captured pretty much live in the studio, and all the better for it. Continue reading “Todd Adelman & The Country Mile “Time will tell” (Porch Lantern Music, 2016)”

If you are a Water’s fan – be it ‘Amused to Death’ or ‘Pros and Cons’ or a Floyd fan particularly of ‘Animals’ or ‘The Wall’ then you are going to really enjoy the musical tropes explored in this angry, reflective, world-weary and ultimately affecting album. If you are new to this music then dive in, the Water’s fine. Teaming up with Nigel Godrich appears to have both edited out raging Roge’s more self-indulgent moments as well as, amongst other things, encouraged more of the ‘found sounds’ that appear throughout the work. Lots of BBC voiceovers from the 70s, the speaking clock, bagging area announcements and, of course, Trump. Continue reading “Roger Waters “Is This The Life We Really Want?””

Harrow Fair are Miranda Mulholland, of Great Lake Swimmers, and Andrew Penner, of Sunparlour Players, and Call to Arms is their debut release as a duo – and genuinely a duo, Mulholland sings and adds violin whilst Penner sings and is a veritable Captain Manyhands adding guitar, drums, keyboards, banjo and much more. Call to Arms instantly declares Harrow Fair to be a veritable Canadian powerhouse of hoof-thumping Americana as first track Hangnail hits the floor running and never lets up with a booming kick-drum and an insistent guitar hook. It’s a love song of sorts, although it’s a twisted love “if pleasure is the habit and pain is the comfort then what are you ?”. Continue reading “Harrow Fair “Call to Arms” (Roaring Girl Records, 2017)”